Experience with Crete & CFI recruiters

[Graymist]

Planning, as I am, to move to the Pittsburgh area from Canada, I called up both Crete and CFI to ask about potential vacancies, since, from what I've read on this board so far, they appear to be arguably the best companies to work for by far.

The Crete recruiter, a specimen by the name of Bill, was one of the most abrupt & obnoxious characters I've ever had the unpleasant experience to talk to : even though I've been driving tractor-trailers for quite a while in Canada ( local, mountain and cross-border ), this "luminary" pretty much pooh-poohed my driving experience, and told me that it counts for absolutely nothing in the US, and that I would have to go to a driving school again. He made it very evident that I was wasting his time on the phone, even by calling him and asking for info. I thanked him ( with a heavy dose of sarcasm ) for his "kindness"....I'm pretty sure he was too dense to understand the undertone !!

The CFI recruiter, Margaret, was quite the polar opposite. She not only took the time to ask me about my situation and what kind of work I was looking for, but she also explained to me patiently, what I need to do to start driving in the US. And she did say that CFI certainly values my Canadian experience, and would seriously take that into account at the time of recruitment. I would, however, need to go through some orientation for a week or two, before being assigned my own truck...which is quite understandable.

Crete may be a great company to work for, but by placing such ignorant cretins ( no pun intended ) as the aforementioned at its point of first contact with potential drivers, it's certainly not doing its reputation any good....or is it simply arrogance as a result of smugness ?!?! Go figure !!

[Nomad_]

If you are a fatalist go with CFI. If you are curious call Crete back and speak to somebody different. There is good and bad everywhere (especially in recruiting).

[Twilight Flyer]

I happen to know Bill and he happens to be one of the better mannered recruiters in the industry...as nice and non-pushy as you can want out of a recruiter. Can't say what happened between the two of you, but he is correct in that your Canadian experience doesn't count for anything in the U.S. with most companies. CFI might be the exception, but those exceptions are rare and they are the exception BECAUSE they run Canada and Mexico both.

[aztrucker]

Hi. Graymist, welcome to the US. I'm curious as to what you have to do to be able to drive legally in the US. I take it you are a canadian citizen only.
I'am a dual citizen and have worked in both Canada & US. I moved from N.W. Ontario to Arizona back in May of 2006. Maybe I can help you in some way, if you have any questions. See ya...

[bluebeetle]

If I came across as "a specimen by the name of Bill, was one of the most abrupt & obnoxious characters I've ever had the unpleasant experience to talk to " then the message was misunderstood.

It is our companies policy that requires that a driver have a permenant residence in the United States. The driver also must have a Class A CDL from the United States to come to work at CCC. To obtain a Class A CDL and meet our hiring requirements the driver must have attended a PTDI certified school or have at least 6 months of experience driving in the United States. Reason behind this policy is two fold. Number one, we have different rules and regulations required by the United States Department of Transportation that are different then in other countries. A solid understanding of these policies is required. Second, we are unable to verify driving experience in foreign countries.

I believe in delivering the truth. If it comes across as being too honest, then I am sorry. But why sugar coat something?

Good luck.

[Sheepdancer]

Man...us recruiters cant seem to win :shock: .....Either we get blamed for not telling the whole story or we are too truthful and the driver gets mad because it wasnt what they wanted to hear.
Recruiters DONT create company policy....we just have to abide by company policy.

[fishnwiz]

If you are interested in CFI go to CFIDRIVERS.com. It,s a site like this but a little more cfi specific. I have gotten a lot of good info there.

[EasyRolln]

Man...us recruiters cant seem to win :shock: .....Either we get blamed for not telling the whole story or we are too truthful and the driver gets mad because it wasnt what they wanted to hear.
Recruiters DONT create company policy....we just have to abide by company policy.

It's the whole "not what you said, but how you say it" factor that bites you guys back most of the time. Recruiters are the face of the company, and what sucks is that sometimes you don't have all the information that you need or the training to do your job correctly. It's just easier for the company to blame you. I couldn't do it based on the simple fact that you talk to so many people with different backgrounds and personalities.

Anyway, Graymist, I hope that everything goes smooth with your relocation to the States. Good luck!

[kips41]

Graymist,

I called Crete yesterday myself and talked to a lady, don't remember her name but I was not highly impressed with Crete either.

My personal choice between the two would be CFI. Although between all of the large OTR companies there is not a dime's worth of difference between them at the end of the year....just what makes each individual satisfied.

I am leaning more towards some of the private fleets, talking with a couple of them now and they seem to be better than your run of the mill
truckload companies.

Good luck.

[okie]

Heck, I am just amazed that something has brought Beetle out of hiding.

[Graymist]

If I came across as "a specimen by the name of Bill, was one of the most abrupt & obnoxious characters I've ever had the unpleasant experience to talk to " then the message was misunderstood.

It is our companies policy that requires that a driver have a permenant residence in the United States. The driver also must have a Class A CDL from the United States to come to work at CCC. To obtain a Class A CDL and meet our hiring requirements the driver must have attended a PTDI certified school or have at least 6 months of experience driving in the United States. Reason behind this policy is two fold. Number one, we have different rules and regulations required by the United States Department of Transportation that are different then in other countries. A solid understanding of these policies is required. Second, we are unable to verify driving experience in foreign countries.

I believe in delivering the truth. If it comes across as being too honest, then I am sorry. But why sugar coat something?

Good luck.

Thank you most kindly for having spelt it out on this board....this is exactly what I'd expected to hear from you when I spoke to you, & not to be treated like some lowlife who has the temerity to call you and ask you for information. Ask yourself this question : even though I tried to elicit information from you, did you tell me all this when I spoke to you....I'm sure you know the answer !!

I can well understand that you must be getting lots of calls everyday, from kooks and weirdos of all kinds....I can put myself in your position, as I worked for a few years in a call centre for a telephone company, before moving to trucking. But you know what, I was paid to handle each and every call like it was the first call of the day, and treat the caller with respect and dignity, unless the caller turned abusive. At no point of time was I supposed to convey the impression that I'd been disturbed by the call. In the way you spoke to me, that condescension was quite implicit....I wish you could have heard yourself talk.

I believe in delivering the truth. If it comes across as being too honest, then I am sorry. But why sugar coat something? .

No sugar coating is required, nor is anything but the truth. But there are ways to do it....one is your way, and the other is the correct, courteous and professional way : yours is anything but.

In conclusion, the reason that I put up this message on this board, is that I had an inkling that you are a regular visitor here....this message was intended less to be an information piece for others, but mainly to draw your attention to this issue, and have you realise the way you handled the situation. I had a gut feeling that you'd respond to it.

Anyway, this isn't going to affect me in any way....the same, however, can't necessarily be said about you, should you choose not to revise the way you speak to potential drivers, who, in your case, are your customers.

Good day, and best of luck.

[Karnajj]

Bill was my recruiter at Crete and I would have to say that I shared none of your experience in dealing with him. In fact, if it wasn't for him, I don't know if I would still be driving today. Maybe the problem is that you expect to be treated like someone special and when you're not you get upset. I don't know. My first reaction to your post was that you were somehow connected with CFI and were trying to trash Crete because we are their biggest competitor for quality drivers. All I know is that I couldn't make anywhere near the amount of money with CFI that I do with Crete, and after all that's why most of us are out here. :wink:

[robertt]

I also had dealings with Bill at Crete and he couldn't have been a nicer gentleman, and bent over backwards to get me a regional position that I had been hoping to get, and I'm sure he didn't have to do. Everyone at Crete treated me great! Although it didn't work out for me there, through nobody's fault at Crete but for my own personal issues, I would recommend them to anyone who was asking, and if I ever decide to go back into trucking full time they will be the one's I look up first, and I would hope that I get to work with Bill again. Anyway, just chiming in. Good luck

[Skywalker]

CFI might be the exception, but those exceptions are rare and they are the exception BECAUSE they run Canada and Mexico both.

This statement is somewhat correct, however....CFI's Drivers...do not go to Mexico....at least not in a CFI Truck pulling a CFI trailer. The company's trailers are taken across the border by contract carriers from CFI's border terminals and brokers.

CFI's Drivers run the US and Canada.

All I know is that I couldn't make anywhere near the amount of money with CFI that I do with Crete, and after all that's why most of us are out here.

I'm not sure how much you make at Crete, but I'm not sure either if your statement is quite right. CFI's top paid solo made I think it was $78 or 82K last year. I think he did it without supplemental $$ from training or recruiting. You'd have to ask someone in Joplin about it

[BanditsCousin]

If he made 78,000, @ 50cpm he'd have to run over 150,000 miles :shock:

[Skywalker]

If he made 78,000, @ 50cpm he'd have to run over 150,000 miles :shock:

We're talking about a fellow who never goes home.... he's out for about 364 days a year... so if you consider the number of days he's out....its altogether possible that he did it without significant problems.

[Smooth]

If he made 78,000, @ 50cpm he'd have to run over 150,000 miles :shock:

We're talking about a fellow who never goes home.... he's out for about 364 days a year... so if you consider the number of days he's out....its altogether possible that he did it without significant problems.

His home is the truck.....

[murph]

For me it was a specimen named Roy. He is alright in my book, but what do I know, I'm American. Thank you Crete recruiters, keep up the good work, lets just be a little more gentle with our neighbors up north.

[jnk2001]

Man...us recruiters cant seem to win :shock: .....Either we get blamed for not telling the whole story or we are too truthful and the driver gets mad because it wasnt what they wanted to hear.
Recruiters DONT create company policy....we just have to abide by company policy.

Can you say, glorified used car salesman? and of course, being JB Hunt, well, you get the picture....

[-FlyByNight-]

I first learned of Bill when I read several of his posts about Crete here on the boards. So when I called Crete to inquire about a driving position, I naturally asked to speak to him. We spoke a couple times before I finally hired on and although I found him to be helpful and very professional, he did come across to me as somewhat short and to the point at times. I just attributed it to him being busy.

I've since met and spoken to him in person a few times and find him to be very friendly and surprisingly funny for a recruiter. :P I'm not sure what transpired between the two of you, but maybe you just got off on the wrong foot. :? Crete is an excellent company to drive for. I'd suggest calling back and just speaking to a different recruiter if you're still interested in Crete. Either way, I wish you the best of luck.